Jacob woke up the next morning both excited and troubled by the dream he’d had. The lady in the forest nearly captured him, snakes had swarmed all over him, and his skin felt like ants were crawling on it. But what she’d said to him had come back. “Danilo.” He had no idea what it meant, but at least he could tell Ebony he’d remembered.
“Kenji said you’d be traveling near the cottage of the Fat Lady,” September said as they headed back to the trail. “You need to stop and talk to her. She’ll help you prepare to meet the Lorkon.”
“I know her,” Jacob said. “She’s in the journal. Where does she live?”
“Just up ahead.” September floated away again.
A few minutes later, September pointed out a small path that led through the tall grass. There was a cabin sitting in a meadow about four hundred yards away from the main trail. A clothesline hung to the right, and they could see a paddock behind the cabin to the left.
“I’m guessing this is it,” Jacob said, then called the Minyas down. “September, Early, please get in my bag. I want you close, but out of sight, just in case. Same as always.”
The Minyas flew into the knapsack, and Jacob closed it as they neared the cabin.
“Do you think it’s a good idea to call her ‘fat?’” Aloren said. “I mean, who likes to be called fat?”
Jacob ran his fingers through his hair. “That’s what Dmitri called her in his journal. I say we just not use her name unless it’s necessary.”
They arrived at the cabin, and Jacob knocked.
No answer. He knocked again.
“Go away,” a woman’s gruff voice shouted.
“Can we talk to you?” Jacob yelled through the door. He heard someone moving around, but no one answered the door. “We were told to stop here!”
“I’m sure you were. Go away!”
“No,” Jacob said. “Brojan and Kenji sent us, and we’re not leaving until you open this door.”
“And why should I believe you?”
Jacob turned to Aloren and Akeno. “She’s not going to open it.”
“Let me try,” Akeno said. “Kenji is my father,” he yelled through the crack.
“Right. As if that’s the truth.”
“No!” Jacob yelled. “He’s serious! Kenji said we needed to stop by the Fat Lady’s cabin, and she would help us know what we need to do to face the Lork—”
Suddenly the door swung wide open.
“Well, why didn’t you say so in the first place?”
The group of travelers took a step back, looking up. The woman standing before them was indeed large—at least five hundred pounds, maybe more, and well over six feet tall. Nothing like the Fat Lady in Harry Potter. She smiled at them, showing an odd assortment of teeth. The top, which were mostly missing, were blackened and crooked, while the bottom teeth were straight, smooth, and pearly white. She wore massive earrings, and the holes in her lobes were stretched out. Her hair was light brown, piled in a knotty-looking mess on top of her head. Her lids were puffy, making her eyes look tiny.
She reached out with a large hand and pulled the three inside, slamming the door shut and pushing them in front of her into the main room of the cabin. “So, tell me,” she said. “What news do you bring from Tagaville?”
They exchanged quick glances.
The Fat Lady let out a booming laugh. “Cat got your tongue, eh?” Plopping into a large, furry-looking chair, she propped her feet up on a table in the middle of the room. “Sit, sit,” she said, motioning to a couch that was surrounded by piles of paper and junk.
Jacob was the first to move. He knew Akeno wouldn’t sit on the end of the couch closest to the woman, so he did.
“Tell me who you are,” the Fat Lady said. “Never seen anyone as big as me, have you?”
Aloren shook her head and glanced at Jacob, who wasn’t sure what to say.
“Speak up, speak up!” The Fat Lady pointed her finger at Aloren. “You first. What’s your name, where’re you from.” It came across more as a demand than a question.
“M—my name is Aloren. I’m from Macaria.”
“Ah. It’s been quite some time since I traveled that far. I usually only get ten feet in front of my cabin before giving up and going back home.” She laughed again and pointed at Akeno. “I’m assuming you’re the one who claims to be Kenji’s son.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Akeno said, his voice shaking. “I’m his eldest. My name is Akeno.”
“It has been several years since I last saw your parents.” She picked up a vial from the table, put a drop of the contents on her finger, then rubbed her bottom teeth. She jerked her finger toward Jacob, who almost jumped up until he saw she was merely pointing. He’d thought she was going to smear some of the stuff on him. “And you? Who are you, and who do you belong to?”
“My name is Jacob Clark. My parents are Lee and Janna Clark. I’m not from around here. I come from Earth, and it’s, well, I guess it’s not—”
The Fat Lady squealed loudly, slamming her hands on the armrests. “Oh, I’ve been expecting you!” She laughed, wagging her finger at him. “Didn’t think you were gonna hear me say something like that, did ya?” She jumped to her feet and strode to a cabinet on the other side of the room, dodging the junk and stacks of papers placed randomly on the floor.
“Oh, and call me Fat Lady,” she said. “It’s the password to enter my house, and I won’t answer to anything else.”
Walking back to the couch, she handed a vial to each member of the group. “Akeno and Aloren, drink this now. Jacob, wait to take yours. It won’t do to have you seeing things you shouldn’t see right now.”
What was she talking about? And what would the potion do to him? Jacob looked at the corked vial in his hand. The glass was swirled brown and blue, and full of a dark, runny liquid. Akeno and Aloren’s potion was different, more of a rose color.
“I really didn’t expect you to bring others with you, so it’s a good thing I thought to make those up, just in case,” the Fat Lady said. “Can’t say I blame ya, though. You know this trip will be extremely dangerous, I’m sure. All your lives are at risk. But who cares these days? As long as the job gets done, right?” She jerked her thumb over her shoulder. “Do you know anything about that city?”
Jacob met eyes with Akeno before looking at the lady again. “Not really, no.” He knew hardly anything about Eklaron. Or the Lorkon, for that matter—besides what they looked like.
“Eh, it’s probably better that way,” she said, picking up a dirty towel that had been crumpled in the seat of her chair. She shook it out, causing a cloud of dust to fly in the air, then tossed it on the table and sat with a thump. “Knowing too much can cause a lot of problems, you know.”
Was she crazy? “I disagree,” Jacob said, sitting up straighter. “I think it’s better to know as much as possible before doing anything that might be dangerous, since—”
“Yes, you would, wouldn’t you?” the Fat Lady said, peering down at Jacob. “It is, after all, second nature to you.” Her voice changed to a more business-like tone. “Knowing as little as possible in this case is in your best interest, though.”
How would she know what was second nature to him, and what was in his “best interest?” He’d never met her before in his life. Jacob scowled and looked at Akeno, who still fingered his vial.
The Fat Lady also glanced at the Makalo. “Boy, you’d better drink that! You’ll wish you were dead if you don’t!”
Akeno didn’t move to drink it, instead looking at Aloren, who shrugged. “Bottoms up,” she said, emptying the vial into her mouth and swallowing. “Wow, bitter!” she gasped.
The Fat Lady guffawed, slapping her knee. “What were you expecting? Fruit juice?”
Akeno also swallowed his, with much the same reaction as Aloren.
“Why do I have to wait to take mine?” Jacob asked.
“Because theirs were designed to prevent reactions, and yours was designed to control react
ions. If you drink it too soon, we’d have problems. And if we were to prevent your reactions, we’d all be in trouble, wouldn’t we?” She smiled her odd grin.
Jacob just stared at her, not sure what to think or say.
“Oh, come on—tell me you’ve noticed that some things affect your companions that don’t affect you.”
Jacob thought about the way Akeno acted when they were in the infected forest. “I’ve noticed.”
“Well, get this. They aren’t going to be affected by those things any more, now that they drank the potion.” She put her legs on the table again.
“What about me?”
“What about you?”
“What does the potion do to me?”
“Well, you’re a special case. If you take that potion now, you’ll be really messed up, and the potion would be diluted by your blood, taking away its effectiveness. Then, when the thing happens that is supposed to cause your reaction, it’ll most likely kill you. Either that, or turn you evil. So, thanks, but no thanks. I’d rather you take the potion when you need it. Oh, and the time to take it is when you feel you have no control over your body. Have them help you,” she said, pointing at the other two.
“What—when I feel like I have no control?” Jacob asked. Was she purposely being vague, or would he really be in danger if he knew more?
“But of course!” she said. “You know, when your body goes haywire, and you don’t know what’s going on anymore? I have no idea when it will happen. Figure it out yourself.”
Her demeanor changed again and she stood, looking intently at Jacob. “When you get the Key, come straight back here. No detours, no stopping for breaks, and no trying to figure out how to use the Key until I tell you.”
She turned to Akeno and Aloren. “Don’t let the Lorkon touch you. The potion might prevent bad reactions, but it will be worthless against their blood.” Walking to the door, she opened it and motioned for them to exit. “I believe you have something to get done, and fast. The longer you take, the worse off you’ll be.”
Jacob, Akeno, and Aloren hurried through the open door. Jacob turned to ask another question, but the Fat Lady shut the door in his face.